11/28/2007

Just to make you smile!


Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout
Would not take the garbage out!
She'd scour the pots and scrape the pans,
Candy the yams and spice the hams,
And though her daddy would scream and shout,
She simply would not take the garbage out.
And so it piled up to the ceilings:
Coffee grounds, potato peelings,
Brown bananas, rotten peas,
Chunks of sour cottage cheese.
It filled the can, it covered the floor,
It cracked the window and blocked the door
With bacon rinds and chicken bones,
Drippy ends of ice cream cones,
Prune pits, peach pits, orange peel,
Gloppy glumps of cold oatmeal,
Pizza crusts and withered greens,
Soggy beans and tangerines,
Crusts of black burned buttered toast,
Gristly bits of beefy roasts. . .
The garbage rolled on down the hall,
It raised the roof, it broke the wall. . .
Greasy napkins, cookie crumbs,
Globs of gooey bubble gum,
Cellophane from green baloney,
Rubbery blubbery macaroni,
Peanut butter, caked and dry,
Curdled milk and crusts of pie,
Moldy melons, dried-up mustard,
Eggshells mixed with lemon custard,
Cold french fried and rancid meat,
Yellow lumps of Cream of Wheat.
At last the garbage reached so high
That it finally touched the sky.
And all the neighbors moved away,
And none of her friends would come to play.
And finally Sarah Cynthia Stout said,
"OK, I'll take the garbage out!"
But then, of course, it was too late. . .
The garbage reached across the state,
From New York to the Golden Gate.
And there, in the garbage she did hate,
Poor Sarah met an awful fate,
That I cannot now relate
Because the hour is much too late.
But children, remember Sarah Stout
And always take the garbage out!
Shel Silverstein, 1974

12 comments:

Brooke said...

A classic!

nanc said...

ahhhhhhhh, shel!

our children have loved his books and i love this one in particular.

someone needs to make some cartoon movies with his works.

Papa Frank said...

I couldn't agree with you ladies more!

Avi said...

Beautiful!
Oh, and I wrote about the meaning of the word goy so check it out. Sorry if you were offended.

Papa Frank said...

Thank you BK. Although there is much that I don't agree with you on I have great respect for you as a person and enjoy our discussions/arguments.

Yehudi said...

I just had a pizza delivered, (chicken, olives, onions, and extra cheese! Mmmm...), and I grabbed a piece and sat down to check out your latest post...then I read about this nasty pile of garbage...Jason, the pizza went back in the box. Thanks.

Papa Frank said...

You heard it here first folks!!! The Frank Family Facts diet plan really works. It's available now in three low monthly installments of $99.99 while supplies last. Get your informational booklet while supplies last!!!

Anonymous said...

That reminds me, I need to go to the dump this weekend!

elmers brother said...

My kids also loved his books...classic.

Anonymous said...

I must have missed this one with my three. I was more of a Sam-I-am kinda reader.

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